D K Shivakumar at Karnataka Parva 2026. Photo: supplied.
Bengaluru: Chief Minister D K Shivakumar inaugurated Karnataka Parva 2026 at Palace Grounds on Saturday, saying the event’s more than 180 stalls would provide market opportunities for artisans and small businesses while promoting cultural diversity and self-reliance through skills.
Unity in diversity and self-reliance through skills were the aims of Karnataka Parva, he said. The programme was intended to preserve traditional arts, develop skills and improve artisans’ livelihoods.
Shivakumar said Karnataka’s regional food traditions and cultural diversity were strengths that needed to be preserved. He described minority communities’ economic self-reliance as part of the state’s overall development.
Call for women to become entrepreneurs
Urging women to become self-reliant entrepreneurs and create jobs, the Chief Minister said the government had introduced programmes to support education and skills among minority youth. Young people should seek employment as well as create opportunities for others, he said.
He said the government was spending ₹1.20 lakh crore annually to strengthen the economic position of people across social groups, and cited its guarantee schemes as support for women.
Minority representation and SIR concerns
Shivakumar said three members of minority communities had been appointed ministers, one held the Legislative Council chairperson’s position, and more than 25 had been appointed to head corporations and boards. He said his government was continuing minority welfare programmes initiated under Siddaramaiah.
He also urged minority voters to remain alert during the SIR electoral-roll revision process and safeguard their voting rights. Alleging a conspiracy to remove minority voters from the rolls, he said the government was opposing it. The allegation was part of his speech; the supplied statement did not include a response from the Election Commission.
The Chief Minister said he had invited members of the Buddhist community in Bylakuppe and representatives of all communities in Karnataka to this year’s Mysuru Dasara celebrations.
Legislative Council Chairperson Saleem Ahmed, ministers U T Khader and Rizwan Arshad, MPs Syed Naseer Hussain and Mansoor Ali Khan, and actor Ramya were among those present, according to the statement.
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